Harness-saddle



(No Model.)

P. BALLANT'YNE.

HARNESS SADDLE.

Patented Oct. 25

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TATES UN r'rn PETER BALLANTYNE, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

HARNESS-SADDLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 484,771, dated October 25, 1892.

Application filed April 16, 1892. Serial No. 429,429. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PETER BALLANTYNE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Back-Band Attachments for Gig-Saddles,ot which the followingisafull, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in back-band attachments for gig-saddles, whereby the back-bands may be readily and easily attached to the gig-saddle without weakening the band by the large opening ordinarily required when the band is attached to the saddle by the terrets; and it consists in a certain novel construction and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter more particularly pointed out and claimed. Ordinarily back-bands are attached by cutting circular openings in the upper ends of the bands and securing them to the saddle-frame by theterrets. Alarge hole must therefore be cut in theband, and the band at the very point that it should be strong is very much weakened thereby, and the terrethole in the band is very apt to tear out. I

overcome this objection by providing the retaining-plates, which surround the terrets, each with a small pin extendinginward, upon which pin the back-bands are hung or attached, instead of upon the terret-pins. These attaching-pins on the retaining-plates can be made small, so that the hole to be cut in the back-band will be of small diameter, and the band very little, if any, weakened thereby.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of the gig-sad dle with myimprovements. Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal sectionof same. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the backbands retaining-plates and portion of the saddle-skirt, showing the method of attachment. Fig.4 is a perspective view of the under side of one of the retaining-plates.

A is the tree-frame for the saddleof any of the ordinary construction.

B B are the skirts or flaps.

C is the saddle seat,under which these skirts are fitted in the usual way. A circular opening a is cut in each of these skirts near the upper end for the reception of the terrets D D, and immediately below this opening a a rectangular opening b is made in each flap, the sides of these openings being extended to form a tongue 0, and this tongue is securely riveted to the saddle-frame by rivet d. In order to give stittness to the flaps B, it is also usual to secure to the rivets (Z (1 strips of metal 6 e, as shown in Fig. 2.

E E are the back-bands, and F F the usual box-loops through which they pass.

The method of construction above described is the usual and customary way of forming the gig-saddle, and in addition to this the old way of securing the back-bands is to make openings in theupper end of the band large enough for the terret-screws f fto pass through, and to secure the bands in these terret-screws. In order to do this, it has been necessary to make a large openingin the band, and consequently with a narrow band the point of attachment was very apt to tear out and the band give way while in use. In order to avoid this danger, I provide the safety-band attachment as follows: G G are the retainingplates, at the upper end of which are the circular openings 9 for the reception of the terrets. On the under surface of these plates are formed and rigidly secured the small pins h it, very much smaller in diameter than the terret-screws. Asmallopeningisthenformed in the upper end of the back-band and the pin it passed through this opening, thus securing the retaining-plates to the back-bands. In adjusting these parts they are put together as shown in Fig. 3, the end of the back-band is raised up, the retaining-plate secured thereto by pin h, and the hand then returned to place, which brings the opening 9 in the retaining-plate over the openingct in the skirt, and the terret is then inserted and secured by the nut or burr Z in the usual way, these burrs having side projections or wings m to keep the burr from turning as the terret is screwed in place. The upper end of the backhand then occupies the space I? in the skirt.

Am aware that back-bands have hitherto been attached to the retaining-plates without the necessity of passing the terret-screws through the bands, and thus weakening them; but in such older forms the bands have been permanently secured to the retainingplates by loops or otherwise. The advantages of my method of attachment are its great simplicity and cheap'ness and. the readiness with which the band can be secured and the ease with which the trimmings can be changed when desired. After the gig-saddle is complete and ready for the market it is often desired to change the trimmings-for example,

to change the plates and terrets from japanned material to gilt or nickle. Now with older constructions this cannot be accomplished without considerable difliculty. When the terret-screws pass through the back-band and the retaining-burr is tacked to the band, as in older constructions, and then the saddle is padded and ready for market, and it isdesired to change the trimmings, the padding has to be almost torn apart before you can get the burr removed from the backhand. With my construction, however, the saddle can be trimmed from the top, as will be readily understood. The burrs can be slipped through the openingb in the. skirt, the retaining-plate released, and new plates and terrets substituted at a moments notice. In addition to these advantages the attachments can be used on any tree, and the tree does not have tobe especially prepared for the purpose, as is usually the case in gig saddles in which the ordinary methods of attachment are departed from.

It will be understood that-the retainingplates can be secured to the back-bands by screws, rivets, or hooks, instead of pins h, as shown, without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what i I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a gig-saddle, a retaining-plate having an opening in its upper end, with terret passing through same and burr with side wings to secure said terret to the frame without tacking to the band, in combination with a skirt having a rectangular opening therein and back-band having a small opening in its upend, with pin on the retaining-plate tobe inserted therein, and thus secure the parts so i that the trimmings, can be readily changed when desired, substantially as shown and described.

PETER BALLANTYNE.

Witnesses HENRY SMITH, ED. J. TYRRELL. 

